Lumber reconditioning device



June 14, 1955 a. w. SHORT LUMBER RECONDITIONING DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 21. 1951 INVENTOR. argon M81701".

June 14, 1955 a. w. SHORT LUMBER RECONDITIONING DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 21 mmvrox eYRM W. 80001."

United States Patent T 2,710,417 LUMBER RECONDITIONING DEVICE Byron W. Short, Troy, Ohio Application March 21, 1951, Serial No. 216,805

5 claims. (c1. -77

This invention relates to a lumber reconditioning device and more particularly to a machine for use in removing cement and the like from lumber which has. previously been used in cement forms.

It is customary practice for builders to use lumber. in the construction of forms for cement foundations and the like and to thereafter use the same lumber either in constructing additional forms or in constructing subflooring or some other permanent portion of the building under construction. The cement which adheres to the lumber thus used not only spoils'the appearance of the lumber but is very objectionable in that it dulls saws used-in cutting the lumber and is otherwise objectionable. Present practice is to manually scrape the cement olf the boards, but this practice is time consuming, expensive, and'is not too satisfactory.

It is an object of this invention to provide a simple and inexpensive machine which will automatically clean the lumber on all sides simultaneously so as to place the lumber in condition for re-use.

More particularly, it is an object of this invention to provide a machine that may be manufactured and sold at a low enough cost to warrant builders and contractors to purchase the same.

7 Another object of this invention is to provide a machine which is both eflicient and economical in use.

A further object of this invention is to provide a machine which is readily adjustable for different size. boards and planks.

Otherobjects and advantages reside in the construe:

tion ofparts, the combination thereof and the mode of operation, as will become more apparent from the following description.

In thedrawings: I Figure .1 is aside elevational .view of aprefe'rred embodiment of my invention} i Figure 2 is an endlevation'al view with parts broken away; and

Figure 3, isasideHeIeVationaI view of the support for the pinion gears which drive one side.- brush.

Referring now to the drawings wherein there is shown a preferredembodiment Jot my invention, reference numeral 10 generally designates a main frame having a top, table or bed 12 across which the lumber to .be cleaned is adapted to'be passed. The means for cleaningthe cement and the like from the .top and bottom sides of the board consists of a pair of'wire brushes .14 and 16 which are mounted on shafts'18 and 2 0'respec tively. 'These shafts are journaled at their ends in suitable pairs of bearing blocks 22 and 24 respectively which are slidably supported'in upright members 26 carried by the main frame 10. Each of the bearing blocks 22 is provided'with an adjusting screw 28 which s'erves to raise and lower the bearing block to which it is attached. The screws 28 cooperate with knurled hand nuts 30 and 32 whereby it is possible to vertically adjust the bearing blocks within the guide slots 34 provided in the vertical uprights 26. A similar pair of bearing blocks 24 serves 2,710,41 7 Patented June 14, 1 955 jack shaft 44 is provided, as shown, and is driven by themotor through the belt 46. A belt 48 drivingly connects the jack shaft 44 to a pulley 50 secured to the one end of the lower shaft 20.

Power is transmitted from the shaft 20 to the shaft 18 through special gearing, as shown. This gearing consists of a first gear 52 keyed to the shaft 20 so as to rotate therewith at all times and a second gear 54 similarly keyed to the upper shaft 18 so as to rotate therewith at all times. Power is transmitted from the gear 52 to the gear 54 through an intermediate gear 56 which is journaled on a support 58. The support 58 is pivotally mounted for oscillation about the shaft 20, as best shown in Figure 1. By shifting the support 58 about the shaft 20, it is possible to maintain the gear 56 in meshing engagement with both of the gears 52 and 54. i 7

By virtue of the above described gearing arrangement, it is possible to drive the brushes 14 and 16 in the same direction and to adjust the distance between the brushes so as to compensate for differences in lumber thicknesses. The support 58 is provided with a slot 60 which allows limited oscillation of the support 58. Any suitable looking means, such as the locking means 62, may be provided for holding the support 58 in any desired adjustment. It will be noted that oscillation of the support 58 about the shaft 20 never causes the gear 56 to move out of mesh with the gear 52. However, such oscillation makes it possible to vertically adjust the height of the gear 56 as the height of the gear 54 is adjusted.

A pair of side brushes and 72 is provided as shown for cleaning the edges of the lumber. These brushes are mounted on the upper ends of the shafts 74 which are journaied in the castings 76, as best shown in Figures 2 and 3. The lower end of each of the shafts is provided with a beveled gear 78 which is arranged to mesh with a complementary gear 80 slidably mounted on the shaft 82 and keyed to rotate with the shaft 82. The shaft 82. is drivingly connected to the jack shaft 44 by means of a V-belt 84. The castings 76 are slidably supported on a pair or" cross-rods 86 which extend from one side of the;

frame 10 to theopposite side thereof. By virtue of theabove arrangement, it is possible to" adjust the distance between the brushes 70 and 72 by adjusting the position of the castings 76. Any suitable means may be provided.

for adjusting the distance between the castings 76. For purpose of illustration there is shown a hand screw 88 which is secured to a shaft 90 which is provided with right' andleft threads at the opposite ends thereof which cooperate with complementary threads on the castings 76, so that upon rotation of the hand screw 88, the castings 76 may be adjustably shifted toward or from one another. on the cross-rods 86.

Ashield partly encloses the upper brush element 14, soas to prevent particles of cement and the like from being thrown up into the operators face. The shield 100 is preferably secured to the slidable bearing blocks 22 so as to-move up and down with the brush element 14.

The brush elements 14, 16, 70 and 72 are preferably made of wire, so as to better withstand the abrasion of very frequently have an appreciable thickness of cement adhering to the edges thereof, due to the leakage of cement between the boards during the pouring of the cement. It is desirable to have the brushes 14 and 16 relatively large and flexible, as they are required to compensate for warpage in the boards. Thus, many of the boards used as forms adopt a convex curvature due to the one side having absorbed more moisture than the other and it is, therefore, necessary to provide brushes which will adapt themselves to the curvature of the boards.

Although the preferred embodiment of the device has been described, it will be understood that within the purview of this invention various changes may be made in the form, details, proportion and arrangement of parts, the combination thereof and mode of operation, which generally stated consist in a device capable of carrying out the objects set forth, as disclosed and defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a lumber renovating machine, a main frame including means for guiding lumber along a given path through the machine, a pair of bearing block guides carried by said frame on opposite sides of said path, a pair of bearing blocks slidably supported in each of said guides, means for independently vertically adjusting each of said bearing blocks, a pair of rotatable brushes having shafts journaled in said bearing blocks, gear wheels on said shafts, said gear wheels having diameters less than the diameters of said brushes, a power transmitting gear for transmitting power from one of said gear wheels to the other of said gear wheels, means supported for oscillation about one of said brush shafts for supporting said power transmitting gear whereby oscillation of said support about said last named shaft does not change the distance between the gear mounted on said last named shaft and said power transmitting gear.

2. In a lumber renovating machine, a main frame ineluding means for guiding lumber along a given path,

a pair of bearing block guides carried by said frame on opposite sides of said path, a pair of bearing blocks slidably supported in each of said guides, at first pair of rotatable brushes having shafts journaled in said bearing blocks, said shafts being horizontally disposed, gear wheels on said shafts, said gear wheels having diameters less than the diameters of said brushes, a power transmitting gear for transmitting power from one of said driven gear wheels to the other of said gear wheels, means supported for oscillation about one of said brush shafts for supporting said power transmitting gear whereby oscillation of said support about said last named shaft does not change the distance between the gear mounted on said last named shaft and said power transmitting gear, a second pair of rotatable brushes for brushing the edges of said lumber and having vertical drive shafts, journal means for said drive shafts, means for slidably supporting said journal means so as to' adjust the distance" between said second pair of brushes, a drive shaft journaled on said main frame, and means for transmitting power from said last named drive shaft to said second pair of brushes.

3. A lumber reconditioning machine comprising in combination, a main frame having means for guiding lumber through said machine, a first pair of rotatable wire brushes for brushing the top and bottom surfaces of lumber passing through said machine, first and second shafts journaled on said frame for supporting said brushes, a second pair of rotatable wire brushes rotatably supported on said frame for brushing the opposite edges of said lumber, a power source, first means for transmitting power from said power source to said first pair of brushes, second means for transmitting power from said power source to said second pair of brushes, said first power transmitting means comprising means for rotating the first of said shafts, a first gear attached to said first shaft, a second gear attached to said second shaft, a transfer gear drivingly connecting said first and second gears, means for supporting said transfer gear for oscillation about one of said shafts, means for adjusting the distance between said shafts, and means for adjustably locking said. transfer gear so as to be arranged in meshing engagement with said first and second named gears.

4. A lumber reconditioning machine comprising in combination, a main frame having means for guiding lumber through said machine, a first pair of rotatable wire brushes supported on said frame for brushing the top and bottom surfaces of lumber passing through said machine, a second pair of rotatable wire brushes rotatably supported on said frame for brushing the opposite edges of said lumber, said second pair of brushes having operating shafts secured thereto, a power source, and means for transmitting power from said power source to said second pair of brushes, said power transmitting 1 means comprising a jack shaft, a first pair of beveled gears slidably but nonrotatably supported on said jack shaft, a second pair of beveled gears fixed to said operating shafts and arranged in meshing engagement with said first named pair of beveled gears, a pair of castings, each of said casting serving to journal one beveled gear of each pair of said beveled gears, and means for slidably supporting said castings relative to said jack shaft so as to adjust the distance between said second pair of brushes.

5. A lumber reconditioning machine comprising in combination, a main frame having means for guiding lumber through said machine, a first pair of rotatable wire brushes supported on said frame for brushing the top and bottom surfaces of lumber passing through said machine, a second pair of rotatable wire brushes rotatably supported on said frame for brushing the opposite edges of said lumber, said second pair of brushes having operating shafts secured thereto, a power source, and means for transmitting power from said power source to said second pair of brushes, said power transmitting means comprising a jack shaft, 3. first pair of beveled gears slidably but nonrotatably supported on said jack shaft, a second pair of beveled gears fixed to said op erating shafts and arranged in meshing engagement with said first named pair of beveled gears, a pair of castings, each of said castings serving to journal one beveled gear of each pair of said beveled gears, and means for slidably supporting said castings relative to said jack shaft so as to adjust the distance between said second pair of brushes, said last named means comprising a hand screw having a threaded connection with at least one of said castings whereby rotation of said hand screw adjusts the distance between said castings.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 335,994- Doane Feb. 9. 1886 350,190 Doane Oct. 5, 1886 701,104 Thomas May 27, 1.902 1,390,218 Sauset Sept. 6, 192i 1,648,794 Wenzel et al. Nov. 8, 1927 1,678,064 7 Jones et al. July 24, i928 FOREIGN PATENTS 611,624 Germany Apr. 2, 1935 

